a Primal Pursuit

sixty six

"I brought pasta!"

My head snapped up at the sound of Asra's voice. He held a tray with two plates and two drinks, a broad grin on his face. I recognised the hearty creamy cheese that he brought toward me, the steaming sauce as enticing as it is hot.

"I thought you said my favourite?" I hummed as he set the tray down.

He frowned, his forehead creasing with confusion. "Cheese and broccoli pasta with garlic bread. What more could you ask for?"

I stared at him with utter repulsive confusion, but when his face genuinely fell with sorrow, I couldn't help but laugh. He grumbled, throwing the cutlery in his hand onto the desk in a very childish tantrum. My laughter grew tenfold at his outburst, but I pulled the dish toward me, anyway.

"I'm messing with you."

"I know," He grunted. "Meanie."

I snorted a laugh, grabbing a forkful of pasta. "What'd you talk to Everett about, anyway?"

"Not a lot," He shrugged.

I raised an eyebrow, chewing slowly. "Not a lot? I wasn't aware that half an hour was nothing."

Asra copied my facial expression as he sat himself into the seat opposite me. He pulled the tray toward himself, stabbing a large fork of pasta with urgency. I noticed he had the same dish, except his was topped with seasoned chicken.

"I was simply asking him if he knew anything of a witch that worked with Alpha Augustus." He explained.

"Did he know anything?" I wondered.

"He has a few leads," He nodded. "But he wants to try keep it discreet."

"How does he even do this?" I cocked my head. "How does he know everything? How did he get into Alpha Augustus's land so smoothly?"

"He came from there," Asra shrugged.

I paused, mid-forkful of pasta, to stare at him. "He what?"

"He hasn't been in a long time,"

"But he has lived there?" I shook my head. "Does he remember Flynn?"

If he did, this would make everything a lot easier!

"No, it wasn't like that." Asra sighed. "His mother was from that pack, and his father was visiting. They found out they were destined, spent a night together, and upon discovering the pregnancy, he stayed until she birthed. Everett lived there for the first few years of his life before they moved to be with his father's family."

"That's a shame," I mumbled. "Could've made things easier."

"His father was my grandfather's gamma.," Asra shrugged. "It is a higher rank than his mother, who held none, so it was only right he moved here. He got in so easy because his maternal grandparents still live there."

"Makes sense," I shrugged, before continuing to eat.

A few moments passed of us eating, a gentle clanking of metal against porcelain, before I spoke again. I had been stewing on the time he had been gone, paranoid he had been blurting my secrets to Everett. Why did he take so long? What was so interesting? Was it me? Was it something else he wasn't telling me?

"That still doesn't explain why you were gone so long." I pointed out.

Asra rolled his eyes. "Do you need my every minute?"

I scowled at him, stabbing a piece of pasta rather forcefully. The fork scraped along the bottom of the dish and he winced; the noise hurting his sensitive little ears.